Temptation
by Beth9891
Summary: Whitney learns just how hard it is too turn away from temptation and how doing what's right can be even harder. Whit/clark slash. brief mention of clark/lex. If you do not like Slash PLEASE do not read.


**This is my first foray into the smallville universe. It is slash...don't read it if you don't like! I don't own the charactesr adn all taht jazz.**

**Leave me a review and let me know what you think!**

* * *

**Temptation**

He hated him with every last ounce of his being….from the moment Whitney Fordman set eyes on the innocent, coltish freshmen he hated him. How dare Kent be there day after day…just feet away from him, tempting him…twisting him?

It wasn't fair.

He had a plan….it was a good plan, one that he couldn't afford to throw away because of something as ridiculous as a little lust. If that's what it was….though he told himself it was probably because Lana refused to put out. Really that was the only logical reason he would ever even think about the tall, slender, freshman, with those big innocent, unnaturally blue eyes.

He was the star football star, the high school stud, the guy dating the most wanted girl in school…. he got good grades, came from a loving family and had oodles of friends. Hell, there was a good chance he would land a scholar ship for next year and be set to go to whatever college he wanted…so it just didn't make sense that he should want some geeky, farm boy, who no-one paid attention to.

It burned him that he did. He tried to squash that traitorous part of his mind down…at first he tried to ignore Kent, pretend that he didn't exist.

It didn't work.

He found himself scanning the halls in-between classes, searching for a dark head of hair that towered over everyone else's. In gym class, he would linger in the change room, covertly checking out how the wiry muscles on Kent's back twisted just so as he reached up to grab something from his locker. No matter how hard he tried he couldn't stop himself.

The worst though was at night. At night, when he lay awake unable to turn his mind off, he would try and replace the picture of dark hair, blue eyes and sharp plains, with a smaller, curvier brunette who he should be wanking too.

His body wouldn't cooperate however…his cock would go limp, his urge unsatisfied until he allowed the picture of a certain farm boy to re-harden things.

As the weeks passed and the issue refused to resolve itself, his anger increased. He got more snappy and short tempered…even going as far as snapping at his mother when she asked him how school was going. He hadn't meant to…he just couldn't seem to help himself.

He couldn't tell her the truth, that he was being driven mad by some freshman outcast; someone who came from a poor family, had no social standing or connections…and oh, by the way mom, they happen to be male. Yeah, that would go over big.

So, he continues to lie….bringing Lana over more. It's was like a dagger to his heart every time he sees his mother's eyes light up with joy at the sight of her. He somehow doubted they would contain the same light if he told her the truth.

He can't bear to extinguish that light….and so the denial continued.

_oxOxo_

When he realized that ignoring the freshman wasn't working he switched tactics.

Instead of ignoring Kent he went out of his way to be cruel to the other teen, ostracizing him and talking trash. He taunted and teased him, in simple terms was an ass, allowing his team mates to think it was because Kent was after his girl. That wasn't it though…well, not entirely.

It was partly to do with the fact that Clark was so obviously in love with Lana Lang, that the only person who didn't realize it was Lana herself…but Whitney wasn't angry over the fact that Lana might leave him for Clark…no, he was angry that Clark wanted her at all…

He said and did things that he was not proud of….he did them all with the hopes of getting rid of some of this anger and confusion. It didn't help. Instead it just added guilt to the mix.

Despite everything he did he still dreamt about those blue eyes, though now instead of shy innocence they stared at him filled with accusation and hurt. The very same way that they had when he convinced his team to help him string up Kent in the cornfield.

He had never hated himself more.

_oxOxo_

The next day when he'd run into Clark at the farmer's market, he had wanted to break down and apologize. Apologize for being a dick, for wanting something he had no right to want. But he didn't.

He was too much of a coward.

His heart had felt like it was going to beat right out of his chest, his stomach clenched with acidic bile when Kent had looked at him that way. With such disappointment and disgust…it made him feel even smaller.

In retaliation he had hammed it up with Clark's father, relishing the idea of getting some other emotion…any other emotion out of those eyes. Anything besides the accusation that was currently there.

Looking back on things he had probably the wrong way about doing so.

He had heard rumors that Jonathon Kent; the former football star and quarter back, wouldn't let his own son join the team, at first he thought the idea ludicrous. Mr. Kent had never seemed like a cruel man whenever Whitney happened to bump into him…so he couldn't see why he would do something like that to his own son. He had dismissed the rumors as idle, small town gossip…

That was until he saw the look on Kent's face whenever he hung out in the bleachers to watch a practice he was not a part of. There was such unhindered longing in his expression… it was not the emotion of someone who was sitting out because of his own wishes.

Because of this, he knew that chatting amicably with Mr. Kent about the last football game would hurt the tall teen. It was an especially low blow… but he couldn't stop the words from leaving his mouth.

He hated Kent even more for bringing out this sadistic streak in him.

He had been so unfairly furious at Kent when his obsession refused to give him back Lana's necklace. He was sickened over the thought of Kent having something that belonged to the tart. He had only given it to him in a moment of jealous rage, one that had left almost immediately… but by then it was too late, as his teammates had been watching.

Now he had to think of a way to explain it to Lana without her finding out what really happened. That was the last thing he needed…to lose the apple pie girlfriend over something he only did because he couldn't handle staring at how tight Kent's jeans were when he bent over.

He was disgusting.

He had left in a rage. His temper was threatening to make him do something even more idiotic then he had already. So he took off, leaving Lana to find her own ride back.

All he could remember was speeding like a madman down the highway, lost in his own self disgust…. and then nothing. Nothing but pain and heat. He swore in his delusional, sick little mind that he felt Kent's strong arms around him….

He woke up to white. White and the smell of morphine.

They told him Kent had saved his life.

His insides twisted a little more.

_oxOxo_

It wasn't long until he found someone to hate even more then Kent, someone who had everything that Whitney wanted… and more. That person was none other than the infamous bad boy millionaire, Lex Luther. Up until Lex had entered his life (no matter how peripherally) Kent had never really spent time with anyone outside his two pathetic side-kicks.

He hadn't cared that Chloe Sullivan was obviously pining just as much for the tall farm boy as Whitney was (only doing a far worse job of hiding it). He might have cared more had Clark shown even an iota of interest in the blond, but he was still too swept up in all things Lana. And Lana was unavailable, Whitney made sure of that.

No, Kent had stuck to his small circle of losers…well, up until Lex had entered the picture.

He knew in the rational part of his brain, that they were just friends…people who occasionally grabbed a cup of coffee or held a polite conversation…but he hated how Lex looked at the freshman.

Like Kent was something the millionaire had to have….and unlike a nosy, little blond school reporter, Lex was not the type to sit back and let things slide. He knew that Luther would go to any length to get what he wanted, and Whitney hated the fact that thing was Kent.

Kent had even saved the bastards life.

The jealous anger increased.

_oxOxo _

It was a week after Kent had pulled him from a sure fire death that things finally came to a head. It had been an eventful week to say the least…it seemed as though something in the town water was turning the locals into raging psychopaths.

At first Whitney clung to the idea that maybe whatever was making his classmates turn into kidnapping lunatics was to blame for his infatuation with Kent… and then he remembered that his infatuation had started way before anyone went on a murderous rampage.

He had needed to get his mind off of things…things being Kent, so he did what any other teen did when they wanted some relief…he planned on getting shit-faced.

Kyle, being the IQ challenged horny muscle head that he was, had of course jumped at the idea and decided that holding an anything-goes bon-fire, rife with alcohol and other substances, was the best idea since sliced bread.

Which was the reason that Whitney now found himself pretending to pay attention to his team-mates lecherous drunk talk, while he did his best to drink enough to black out.

"Tell me Fordman….is Lang as flexible in bed as she is doing those hot little cheer numbers?" Taylor asked, leering drunkenly and swaying ever so slightly as his inebriation wrecked havoc on his balance.

Whitney, grimaced slightly at his friends words but gave an answering grin, "wouldn't you like to know?" In truth, Whitney didn't have a clue…it wasn't as though Lana let him anywhere near her bed.

Chris, one of his teammates who had always been jealous of Whitney's star status and money, snorted derisively, chugging down the rest of his beer, "I would bet you haven't even tapped that"

Whitney glared at him, trying to come up with the words to make his denial believable, but before he could so much as open his mouth, Chris pounced on his hesitance "….or maybe the problem's not her"

Fear and anger battled for dominance before the later won out, "what the fuck are you implying Gerson?"

Chris sneered back at him, his face twisting into a cruel expression, "_nothing_ Fordman"

Whitney swallowed reflexively, "that's what I thought"

The topic drifted, falling on football and the favorites for nationals…but Whitney could feel the suspicious looks being sent his way. He forced himself to remain nonchalant; all the while his gut was churning nauseously. Eventually he could take no more and made some excuse about having to help his dad in the morning before escaping to his truck with the intentions of driving home.

It was only after he had dropped his keys three times, because the amount he had drunk was interfering with his coordination that he tossed the idea of driving home and decided to walk instead. It really wasn't that far….at least that's what he thought his drunken state of mind.

He was thankful for once that Kyle had insisted on starting their drinking sojourn so early, it wasn't even ten pm yet…so he had plenty of time to stumble his way home before his parents became pissed off.

He didn't know how long it was before he came across the creepy ass cemetery.

He wasn't expecting to see anyone there at this time of night…much less _him_. But there he was in all of his denim clad glory, standing with his back to Whitney while leaning against the trunk of the big oak and staring off into space.

Whitney didn't know why he did it…maybe it was his lowered inhibitions…. although if he was honest, he had sobered up a fair bit during his walk.

"Kent" he called out, only slightly slurring as he made his way passed the iron-wrought gate and over to where the quiet teen was.

Kent's head jerked up in surprise, a startled look on his face when he saw that he was no longer alone. His expression changed from surprise to one of resignation when he discovered just who was walking towards him, "what do you want Whitney? I'm really not in the mood to deal with your bullshit right now" he said wearily, no real bite just resounding tiredness in his tone.

For some reason this incensed Whitney even more. The conversation from earlier was playing like a damn annoying loop over and over again in his head as he moved closer…far closer then was socially appropriate.

"You" he stated, leaning in, forcing Kent to back up against the trunk of the tree in order to avoid being head-butted.

"What?" the other teen asked nervously, looking incredibly uncomfortable with how close Whitney was too him.

"I said Kent" Whitney breathed pressing even closer so that their bodies were flush against each other, "You"

He felt more then heard Kent's breathing hitch, the rapid beating of the teen's heart, more than anything made Whitney give into his raging desire.

He pushed the startled boy against the tree and forced their mouths together violently. At first Kent was too surprised to respond, but after a few seconds his mouth started to move against the quarterbacks. Whitney for his part was lost in a haze of bliss and feeling.

He didn't hold back like he did with Lana, unafraid to cause the other boy pain with his harsh, frantic kissing, biting down viciously on Clark's (and when did it become Clark?) full lower lip to the point that he should have been drawing blood. They battled for dominance, tongues twisting, teeth clashing until the lack of air forced Whitney to pull back.

He had never seen Clark look so debauched, his eyes were half-lidded, and his lips swollen falling slightly open as he panted trying to get air.

And suddenly reality caught up with him.

What the fuck had he done? Shit! Fuck! How could he have been so stupid? He reared back violently stumbling a few steps back in panic.

"Whitney?" Clark asked not moving from his slightly slumped stance against the tree, voice full of concern and confusion.

Whitney swung his head wildly, scanning the surrounding area like a desperate man, praying that they were truly alone and no one had seen what had just happened. Something in his expression must have worried Kent, for the teen made a hesitant move towards him placing one of his abnormally large hands on Whitney's shoulders.

The heat from the contact made Whitney want to lunge back at him and finish what they started, instead he shoved Clark's hand off his shoulder violently, "Don't fucking touch me" he spat his anger and confusion making him lash out.

Clark pulled his hand back as though he had been burnt, hurt and confusion playing over his moonlit face.

"Fucking stay away from me Kent" Whitney snarled at the lost looking teen in front of him, before he half stumbled, half ran from the cemetery.

He didn't bother looking back.

_oxOxo_

He woke the next morning with the sound of an army of cruel little elves tap dancing a jig in his brain. His mouth tasted like he had personally sampled his little cousin's mud pie…the ones that never quite stuck together because she always mixed too much of her play box sand in.

Memories from the night came back to him and found himself rushing to the bathroom and retching up what little was in his stomach.

What had he _done_?

He swallowed reflexively and leaned his forehead against the cold side of the bath tub, wishing that he had a magic rewind button, a way to take back his actions…he hadn't meant to let that part of him out. He couldn't afford to.

But the damage was done, now that he had given in to the little monster and tasted Kent's weather chapped lips he could think of little else. It had been a rushed, sloppy desperate kiss and he could tell that Kent wasn't all that experienced, but it had been the best damn kiss he'd ever had.

It was wrong…so fucking wrong of him to be thinking about how perfect Kent's toned body had felt pressed against him. He wanted to sob at the unfairness of it all.

He didn't know what to do…well, no that was a lie…he did know what to do. He was going to pretend the whole thing never happened, he just didn't know if Clark would do the same thing.

Fuck! He was such a moron…he felt a small niggling of guilt worm its way into his gut when he remembered the hurt and confused expression on Clark's face before he had run away….

He pushed the guilt away harshly, letting his frustration and anger takes its place. Fucking Kent….what the hell was he doing in a graveyard at ten in the fucking evening? It was creepy that's what it was…._and kind of hot_….his traitorous mind whispered.

He sighed and hoisted himself up off of the bathroom floor deciding that he had spent enough time fretting over it. A shower and handful of Tylenol later and he was ready to brave the outside world once more.

The week that followed was just like all of the weeks before the fateful kiss…. almost. Except now whenever he caught sight of Kent his brain was thrust back into that graveyard, with Kent's shocked hitch of breath and swollen lips.

His mood deteriorated, his action grew more violent…the number of fist fights he got into soared.

He hated how now, when he tripped Kent or rammed into him in the hallway those blue eyes filled with hurt and accusation. It just made him want to erase it…to punch that look off those angelic features….or maybe kiss them….

NO!

It was a mistake, and it would never happen again…. Somehow that thought just made him feel worse.

_oxOxo_

He knew that Coach Walt Arnold was bad news… he had always been a bit of a hot head but this year it was to the point of irrational. Whitney knew that the coach was not the only one who had a temper and with what had been going on between him and Kent, it had only gotten worse, but compared to Coach Arnold he was as calm as a yogi master.

Still, he needed his position as the star quarterback too much to worth risking it and saying something, and apparently the rest of the guys on the team felt the same way. So, they put up with the yelling and screaming, the insults and constant belittlement, the violent outbursts…and even a few physical blows, if the coach was angry enough.

But things didn't start to get really bad until the coach was on the precipice of his 200th victory….the pressure to win wasn't just weighing on the team, it was crushing them. Given how stressed out and unsure Whitney was already with his entire life he dug his head in the sand and kept his mouth shut.

It was one of the reasons he didn't try to dissuade his friends from accepting 'help' to pass their exams…he knew it was unethical but he had great marks already and in light of some of the other things the guys did, he figured it was small fish.

So he didn't say anything, even after he saw the coach do the impossible and somehow cause the sprinklers to shoot jets of flame. It wasn't until he saw the bandages on Trevor's arms that he started to think that things had gone too far…

But he wasn't brave enough to do anything about it… he just wasn't that guy. The guy who stood up for those who were wronged, who swam against the crowd…no, that wasn't him, regardless how much he wished it was.

He needed that football scholarship…it was his ticket out of here, away from Smallville. It was his chance to start fresh where no one knew what kind of guy he'd been in high school, too be something other than Henry Fordman's son. He knew that if he had to rely on his father's money he would get stuck taking something like business management and end up being guilted into coming back home to help with the store.

He couldn't afford to let that happen to him.

So, he had said nothing.

He should have known that the bane of his existence; that shy, geeky farm boy would once again manage to do what he could not….to stop it. And he did, in his usual heart stopping, death defying way…superboy saved yet another worthless person.

He wondered if being worthless was one of the farm boy's prerequisites for saving someone…his track record suggested it was; Lana Lang….Lex Luther…Trevor Chapell….him.

He felt like he was slowly being crushed by this secret. He knew he couldn't continue this way…

Something had to give.

_oxOxo_

He didn't know what possessed him to come here of all places. But somehow hearing Kyle gleefully gossip about how Kent had been almost burned alive had made that irritating twisting in his gut just that much more pronounced. What the hell was it about Kent that seemed to attract near death experiences?

First, he had almost gotten hit by Lex Luther's Porsche, then he had heard rumors about how Greg Arkins- the newly dubbed 'bug boy' had tried to kill him…and most recently, their pyromaniac of a coach…and for some reason, Whitney found that this bothered him.

Oh, he had long since admitted to himself that he held a fair amount of lust for Kent…but lust and actually caring enough about the person to worry about if they got hurt or not (well seriously hurt…since it would be a bit hypocritical of him, since half the time he was the one wanting to hit Clark) were two different things entirely.

So, questioning his mental status (not for the first time this year) he found himself knocking on the Kent's cheerfully painted front door. A door, which was promptly opened to reveal the smiling face of Martha Kent- one hand still incased in an oven glove.

He took a second to note the room behind her; it was very quaint… it looked like it had been cropped out of a 'housewives of today' magazine. It had the ambiance that his own mother had always tried to achieve (but only when there were people other than her family to take note) but had never quite managed. He got the feeling that Martha Kent baked apple pie on a daily basis for her family… instead of just when they had guests over.

He shifted uncomfortably, thinking again what a terrible idea this was…honestly he had no idea what he had hoped to achieve by showing up on his obsessions door step. But before he could make some lame excuse and tuck tail and run, Martha was greeting him warmly and ushering him inside her cinnamon smelling kitchen.

"Whitney! How good to see you….what brings you by?"She asked warmly moving back towards the oven.

"Hi, Mrs. Kent…I um…was actually looking for Clark…" he managed to get out without coming across as too much of a stumbling schoolboy.

"Oh of course, Clark is just out in the loft….go right ahead" She made a motion towards the barn that was just visible through the screen door.

Whitney nodded quickly and moved towards the door, relieved to get away from the uncomfortably knowing stare of Mrs. Kent. "Oh…and Whitney?" she called after him causing him to pause, "be sure to stop back in before you leave …I have some plates to send back to your mother"

Feeling overly relieved that she had brought up the strangeness of his wanting to see her son; Whitney stated he would before fleeing as confidently as he could manage to towards the barn. It didn't take him long to find the stairs to the loft and head up. He found himself pausing at the top distracted by the site that was Clark Kent.

Clark was half seated-half lying on one of the sofa's, dressed only in a thin white tee and pair of blue boxers reading a book that from Whitney could make out, was about space travel. Weird. Not weird however, was just how much Clark's attire clung to him thanks to the recent hot stretch of weather that had been plaguing Smallville.

Whitney swallowed audibly, before clearing his throat causing Clark to almost fall off the sofa with a startled yelp. His head shot up and his face flushed a deep red when he saw Whitney standing there, "Whitney?" he asked tentatively as though waiting for outburst from the blond.

Whitney felt his guilt increase another degree at this…he had been especially angry and cruel towards the other boy. "Hey" was all he could think to say.

"Um…what are you doing here?" Clark finally asked after quickly righting himself on the sofa and in doing so causing his tee to ride up just enough to expose a small tan lined of skin by his waist. Whitney fought not to stare.

Right. Question…one he should answer…

"I..I wanted to thank you" he finally managed to say unable to think of anything else while faced with a barely clothed Clark Kent.

"Thank me? for what?" Clark asked suspiciously.

"um…for saving my life…you know when I crashed" Whitney stuttered a bit, feeling more and more like a moron with every second that passed.

"Now? You came all the way here to thank me for pulling you out of your truck now? At nine at night….after weeks have gone by?" Clark asked incredulously.

"Yes" Whitney said…"what else would I be here for?" he cursed the stupid question the minute it left his mouth…he had not meant to say that…he really did not want to talk about the graveyard…or did he? Arrrgg…he didn't know anymore, damn Kent for confusing him even more.

"What else would you be here to talk about?" Clark deadpanned still full of disbelief, "…hmmm I don't know… how about the fact that you practically assaulted me in the graveyard little over a week ago and then ran away…or the fact that you have made my life a living hell at school from the minute we met….or I don't know…how about your bipolar mood changes? Pick any one..." Clark let off an admittedly logical rant, his disbelief quickly giving way to frustrated anger.

Whitney's following silence seemed to just irritate the quickly becoming irate brunette further, "As I said before Whitney…What the Hell do you want? Because frankly I am sick to death of your mind games so either tell me what you are doing here or get the hell out"

The rare sight of Clark Kent bristling with anger was enough to cause Whitney to once again lose all thought of consequences and he stalked towards the fuming boy.

It was like déjà vu… only instead of pushing Clark against a tree trunk, he attacked his mouth and pushed him back towards the sofa. Like the night in the grave yard both boys became lost in the flurry of sensations, their kisses hot and desperate.

Clark fell back into the couch bringing Whitney with him so that he was straddling the lanky teen, his hands scrabbling desperately at Clark's tee-shirt. When they broke off their kiss so that he could wrench the offending garment off Clark managed to gasp out, "W-what are we doing?" his face flushed and lips swollen.

"shut up…no talking" Whitney snarled back at him before grinding down on Clark's growing bulge, causing the teen to groan and drop his head back. He was quick to drag Whitney's mouth back towards his own and opened it willingly to allow the quarterback's tongue access.

They ground desperately against each other before Whitney felt Clark's hips jerk slightly beneath him and heard the teen gasp as his orgasm took over. Seeing Clark with his head thrown back, eyelashes flutter and mouth open brought Whitney his own release.

He leaned against Clark's sweaty chest panting as the haze of pleasure slowly left him. Once again he couldn't believe things had escalated to this point, but unlike last time he couldn't bring himself to regret it. He had never felt this good with Lana.

He sighed and moved himself off of Clark's lap so that he was slumped against the couch sitting next to him. As much as he had enjoyed this…he couldn't let it get out.

Clark's breathing had slowed back down so that it was steady again, and he was staring dazedly into the space in front of him. A long period of silence descended on them moving from comfortable- post orgasm induced, to tense and uncomfortable.

"so…what does this mean?" Clark finally broke the silence his voice unsure and hesitant.

Whitney wanted to tell him it meant nothing, but the memory Clark's hurt expression from last time he left him leaning against the tree stopped him. Instead he decided to try the truth….well at least a version of it, "…I-I don't know….I'm still with Lana, and that isn't going to change Clark…I-It can't change….I need a scholarship and well…this is Kansas" he trailed off leaving the common knowledge of just how homophobic this state could be left unsaid.

Clark nodded, closing his eyes in resignation…no surprise on his face, "yeah…ok"

Whitney whipped around to stare at him in surprise…of all things he had expected Clark to say it wasn't ok. "Ok?" he asked

"Yeah…I-I get it….you just wanted to get it out of your system…well ok you have…there's nothing left to say" he answered defeat heavy in his voice.

Whitney swallowed a sudden lump in his throat; he should not be feeling like such an asshole right now. This was a good thing! This is what he had wanted…and yet….looking at the crestfallen expression on Clark's face he somehow felt that it wasn't.

He bit back a sigh, knowing that he would probably regret this but not caring in the moment, "look Clark…I like you…more then I should…I still want you"

Clark's head shot up from where he had been studiously studying the barn floor, a small sliver of hope blooming in him, "But what about Lana?" he asked.

"If I take a break from her…would that help? We could go slow…figure things out….it would have to be a secret though" he offered not really believing that he was doing so. What the hell? After a few good kisses and frenzied groping he was willing to toss aside his two year relationship?

Admittedly, the entire relationship was basically a fraud but still…he had worked hard on securing the most popular girl in school as his 'girlfriend'….

Clark looked uncertain but after a moment sighed, running his hands through his already disheveled hair… "ok" he said quietly.

"Ok?" Whitney asked mirroring their earlier conversation.

Clark looked up at him with a small shy smile, "Yeah…ok"

Suddenly all of the doubts and consequences of his hastily made promise didn't seem all that important. They all paled in compare to any smile of Clark Kent's.

_oxOxo_

The next several weeks were some of the best weeks that Whitney had experienced in Smallville. Of course they would have been better without all of the sneaking around…but that was unavoidable. He continued to meet up with Clark whenever he could, whether at the other teen's loft (apparently Clark had told his parents that they were partners on some science project…something that Whitney would have ribbed him about if he hadn't had better things to do to the lanky farm-boy) or in an dark closest.

It was always a little rushed, with frantic scrabbling at each other's bodies…desperate to get off before they had to part. He had caught some flak for breaking up with Lana, but he was able to pass it off easily enough by hinting it was because she wouldn't go 'there' with him.

It made him feel like a jerk, but it kept everyone from guessing the real reason…that he just so happened to be getting off with the boy he had tormented relentlessly all year (although he had put an effort into easing back on targeting Clark as much as he could without it looking suspicious).

Not that he was really going there with Clark either. Oh, they fooled around enough, definitely going further then he and Lana had; a few hand jobs, making out….hell, even one or two blowjobs… but they had never gone all the way. And it wasn't because Whitney didn't want too…but Clark said he wasn't ready for that, so Whitney held himself back.

He saw it in Clark's eyes sometimes after they had finished making out or making each other come; a hint of sadness, of disappointment. He knew that Kent wanted more than their frenzied sessions, that he hated hiding from everyone….but Whitney couldn't offer the teen more so he pretended he didn't notice.

He was once again at the now familiar loft, as he came up the stairs he saw Clark staring, lost in some thought out at the night sky. He didn't hesitate to move up against the taller teen's back, wrapping his arms around the slim waist and placing a greedy kiss on the back of Clark's neck. He felt Clark stiffen momentarily before relaxing, leaning back into Whitney's embrace.

"Hi" Clark greeted quietly groaning softly as Whitney continued down his back trailing down the expanse of his neck with barely there kisses.

"mm" Whitney greeted back, grabbing hold of Clark's hips and spinning him around so that they were facing each other. Clark smiled down at him before bring his mouth down in greeting, biting softly on Whitney's lower lip in order to gain entrance.

The continued kissing and groping as they stumbled there way over to what had now become a familiar make out spot. Whitney asserted his dominance, like he had done so often in the past by pushing Clark down onto the couch and kneeling in-between the teen's parted legs. He loved the fact that Clark submitted to him…it was an amazing feeling, knowing that the farm boy could easily have taken charge but allowed Whitney to instead.

Whitney made fast work in removing both of their shirts and moving onto Clark's jeans and boxers leaving the teen naked for his perusal. He rubbed up against him, delighting in the muffled groan it elicited from Clark, letting his hands trail down to cup the other boys ass.

He moved back up to capture Clark's mouth in another passionate kiss before pressing his football roughened fingers so that they rubbed against the other boy's entrance. He felt Clark's sharp intake of breath when he let one of them breach the teen's hole.

"W-Whiteny" Clark stuttered, his head falling back slightly at the feeling of the foreign intrusion. Whitney smiled into the shoulder he was currently kissing and pressed his finger in further. This seemed to wake Kent out of his pleasure induced haze. He squirmed underneath the blond on top of him and tried to push Whitney's hand away.

"W-Whitney" he tried again when the blond paused, "…I-I…no…I'm not ready for this" he stuttered out trying to get his thoughts into coherent working order.

Whitney couldn't believe what he was hearing…he knew the other teen had been enjoying it…so why the hell did he want to stop? "Come on Clark…its fine, I'll be gentle I promise" he cajoled moving his other hand down to stroke Clark's length.

"uhggn" Clark moaned at the friction, squirming helplessly for a second, but then he moved to push Whitney away again. "No, Whitney….I said no…I-I don't want to go that far….not yet" he stated again but this time in a firmer tone.

Whitney growled in frustration and disappointment before moving off of the naked boy, "fine…whatever. I don't see what the big deal is" he snarled stooping down to pick up his own shirt and putting it on hastily. Clark stared up at him silently, hurt and confusion warring once again on his face.

Whitney stooped down to grab Kent's clothing and tossed them at him carelessly, still pissed off and frustrated. "I don't have time for this" he stated, "I'll see you later" before spinning and storming down the stairs and out of the Kent barn loft.

He didn't wait for a reply, nor did he turn around to look back at the startled teen.

If he had he might have seen the single tear that fell down Clark's cheek.

_oxOxo_

Whitney spent the next week avoiding any place that he might run into Clark (well with the exception of school…that was one place he really couldn't avoid, though he had taken to ducking into empty classrooms or the bathroom whenever he thought he saw that familiar mop of dark hair.

He felt horrible. He once again could not believe he had been such an ass to the other teen. He didn't know why he acted this way around Clark; it was like a reflex…something that happened before he could stop it.

He had never pushed or pressured Lana into doing more then she was willing, so he didn't know why he did it with Clark. Then again he had never been nearly as turned on by Lana as he was by Clark…not that it excused his actions in anyway.

Part of him hoped that Clark would finally get fed up enough and break off whatever they had together…at least that way he would stop hurting the freshman. But a stronger part of him balked at the idea of not being with Kent.

The idea of him with _anyone_ else was enough to make him see red.

He knew he should go and apologize to Clark for his actions earlier that week but his pride prevented him from doing so. Part of the injury to his pride was that Clark appeared to want him less then he wanted Clark. At least that was how he saw it…

"tney…Whitney!" interrupted his morose thoughts and he looked up to see one of the last people he wanted to see at the moment… Lana Lang was standing staring at him.

Whitney pushed the half eaten cafeteria muck away from him before turning fully so that he was seated with his back to the table, facing the petite brunette, "Hey Lana…what did you want?"

In truth he was a little surprised to see her...she hadn't exactly taken the break-up all that well. The past month or so they had maintained a cordial relationship but there was some definite tension…and not the good kind.

Weirdly enough Lana blushed and looked a little embarrassed, "Look I know that we aren't together anymore…but my aunt gave me two tickets for a charity art event in Metropolis and…well she's been on my case to invite you…" she trailed of shifting uncomfortably, "I told her we broke up…but well, you know how she is…to just shut her up would you come?" she asked and then seeing the look on his face added, "…just as friends promise."

Whitney silently debated his options…this could in a way make up for how he left things…and it would be nice if they could be friends. He didn't hate her or anything…he just didn't want to date her (well not when Clark was the other option…even if he couldn't let anyone know that Kent was the other option). He sighed, he would probably end up regretting this, "I guess so…when is it?"

Lana beamed at him, the first pleasant expression she had sent his way in months, "Great…it's Friday, starts at seven with cocktails and such…pick me up around four? We can stay at my aunts after so you don't have to drive home that night"

Whitney internally rolled his eyes as her normal 'take charge' attitude came out but nodded his agreement.

Just before he left the cafeteria, intent on getting to his Algebra C class on time for once, he caught a pair of blue eyes staring at him. There was no hurt or confusion this time, just resignation…

Somehow that was even worse.

_oxOxo_

He knew that something was wrong…he had seen the change in Clark ever since the night at the museum and for once he was pretty sure it had nothing to do with him. Though he could partially understand, that night itself, had been several painfully awkward hours for Whitney.

He had picked Lana up at four as instructed and even though he knew that he was no longer interested in her in 'that' way, he couldn't deny that she looked nice. She had on a short, beige and silver dress, her hair styled and she was wearing a conservative amount of make-up. The minute he saw her he knew that this was a mistake…she was dressed as though she was trying to impress. She might have said she only asked him because of her Aunt, but he thought that there was more to it than that.

Still he had been the perfect gentlemen; he almost always was when he was with her… unlike when he was around Clark. He didn't feel that need to possess or control when he was with her. He knew just based on that fact alone he should stay away from Kent…it was cruel and unfair to the other boy…but he just didn't seem to have the will power to do what was right.

They had spent the majority of the drive in uncomfortable silence, with the odd polite comment thrown in when the air became too heavy. He had never been more relieved to arrive in Metropolis before, even if it was only to a pompous art thing.

He should have known that in less than an hour he would have much preferred the awkward silence of the car. He nearly did a double take when he saw him…at first he thought it was his mind playing tricks on him but then again his mind would probably have conjured him with far less clothing. Though he had to admit no one else could have pulled off the dark red dress shirt and navy blue sports jacket like Clark could.

It was bad enough seeing him there, taunting him…tempting him, without even factoring in the fact of who he had come with. Of course it had to be Lex. He felt his blood boil at the sight of the billionaire touching what was his…the possessive hand Lex kept on Clark's shoulder…steering him from person to person, display to display.

He hated the fact that Luther's belt buckle probably cost more than his entire ensemble alone. What he hated even more was the look of awe and amazement in those enticing blue eyes. It was one of the things about Clark that called to him so much…he always seemed to have such an optimistic outlook on everyone…despite the evidence to show him otherwise.

Even after Whitney had treated him so horribly, Clark seemed to always see past it, to seek out the qualities that could redeem him…apparently he did it with Lex as well. When Luther dragged Clark over to say hi the billionaire didn't even try to hide the smug, challenging look in his eyes when he shook Whitney's hand. What was worse was Clark avoided looking at him at all…concentrating all of his focus on Lana and Lex.

He knew he had screwed up in the loft…he just hadn't realized just how much.

The evening trudged on and Whitney had tried to keep one eye on the tall freshman but at some point he seemed to vanish. The next thing he knew there was a bunch of commotion outside, something about a bus crashing and almost killing a homeless guy….of course Clark was the one to witness it.

After that he had ended up driving Lana all the way home (he was in no mood to stay over at her aunt's place in Metropolis) and he hadn't seen Clark again until school two days later. It was there that he noticed that something was seriously bothering the other teen. There was a pinched look to his normally relaxed features, an edginess that opposed who Clark Kent was.

Only a few days later gossip was running rampant stating that Jonathon Kent had been arrested for murder…the rumor was that a dead body had shown up in the Kent's barn. Whitney didn't know what to believe…he just couldn't reconcile the wholesome persona of Jonathon Kent with that of a cold blooded killer. He knew that there was more to the man then met the eye, but he just couldn't believe that it was anything as cruel as that.

He had tried to approach Clark about it, but he had been brushed off… something that would normally have irritated him if he hadn't seen the stress in the other teen's face.

And then all of a sudden Jonathon was being released with apologies and the pinched look to Clark's face was gone. He didn't know what had changed but he was disproportionately relieved over the fact.

He was now once again heading up the stairs to the Kent barn loft; Clark had told him once in a rare moment of intimacy that his parents had built it for him with idea of it being a place for him to find solitude. Of course Whitney being the idiot he was had immediately ruined the moment by teasing Clark about it. Though judging by the amused glint in the teen's eye he hadn't taken offense.

Clark looked up the moment he got to the top of the stairs for once not being taken unaware at his presence there. Clark sighed and shifted over so that there was room for him to sit next to Clark on the couch. Whitney did so with slightly more hesitance than normal.

Silence stretched out between them before they both opened their mouths to speak at once. Clark gave a small chuckle that seemed to break some of the tension before gesturing at him to continue.

"Look…Clark, I'm sorry about the other night. That wasn't fair of me…and-and I want to apologize"

Clark looked at him and sighed again, running a hand through his dark hair wearily, "I'm sure you are Whitney…" he paused but continued on before the blond could say anything else, "You always are…it's just a never ending cycle with you. You act like an ass, than you're sorry and apologize. You act like a decent human being when we're alone but then as soon as we're in public it's the same old shit..."

Whitney swallowed the lump in his throat, there was no way he could deny the truth to Clark's words, "I know I do…but you have to understand…I-I can't be seen as weak with the other guys Clark…I-I'm not as strong as you.."

Clark turned to look at him, his eyes full of pity but there was a determined set to his lips. "I understand that Whitney…or at least I try to…but I can't keep doing this…it's-It's killing me…I can't keep making excuses for you or lying to everyone else that I care about. I thought I could deal with the whole secret thing…but after this week…I just can't do it anymore…I already have too many secrets, I can't..no, I don't want to have another" he trailed off looking down at his hands.

Whitney tried to swallow again but found that his throat was too dry, "W-what are you saying?"

Clark looked back up at him this time there was no hesitance in his tone, "I won't keep doing this Whitney, if you can't tell anyone else about us…there can't be an us. I won't be some secret shame of yours"

Whitney felt as though his whole world was crumbling before him…he wanted Clark so badly, he needed him…but he couldn't do what the other teen was asking him. He just wasn't strong enough for that.

Clark must have seen it in his face because the resignation was back, "I guess you have already made your choice…" he stated softly before leaning over and placing a soft kiss on Whitney's lips. "Good bye Whitney" he said and stood up walking down the stairs and out of the barn.

Whitney didn't know how long he sat on the couch in the Kent's barn, before he numbly stood up walking out of the loft for what he was sure would be the last time.

As he got into his truck and drove away, he couldn't help but think he had made the worst mistake of his life.

_oxOxo_

Everything went steadily downhill from that night. It wasn't even a few weeks later that he found out that due to an old knee injury he wouldn't be eligible for the previously promised scholar ship to Kanas State. It was like everything came crashing down on him in that moment.

All of the lies, all of the sneaking around had been for nothing…absolutely nothing. He had started out with the perfect girlfriend, a sure fire football scholarship, the king of the school. Then he had let Lana go…but had found some brief amount of happiness in Clark Kent….until he lost him too. Now he had lost the one thing that was going to get him out of this small hick of a town.

It was over. What was there left for him? A lousy low paying job at his dad's store? If he was lucky finding some equally dried up and disillusioned girl to marry. Hell, maybe in ten or so years they'd be blessed with a brood of whiney, smelly kids….yeah the good live.

It was this image…the one of him fifty pounds heavier, wasting away his Sundays swigging beer and watching rerun TV episodes that had him agreeing to hang out with three guys who just might be able to understand him. Sure, he had never been all that close too Wade Mahaney, Derek Fox and Scott Bowman, but what else did he have now?

Certainly not Clark…well not the way he wanted him anyhow. The altruistic farm-boy had of course come by the shop, spouting all of his usual optimistic, overly caring crap (and it didn't help that Whitney still found this quality to the dark haired man endearing). He had of course lashed out more out of habit than anything else and Clark just gave him that infuriatingly understanding look.

He discovered he still hated/loved Clark's empathy….hell not even his own former team mates had stood by him…however subtly it was, they had started avoiding him as if they believed his own bad luck was contagious.

At first Wade and the guys seemed really cool, sure there were a few things that didn't quite add up…like how strong they were, how they had such expensive things when they had no jobs…little things. It was only after he was in too deep to pull out that he realized just how bad of news these guys where.

He might act like a dick the majority of the time, but he was no criminal…or at least he had believed that of himself. He really should have listened to Clark when he warned him about them…but like a fool he hadn't.

He couldn't believe when they led him into the old meat-plant and threatened to kill Lex…sure he hated Lex with a passion (especially since the last few weeks Clark had been spending more and more time with the billionaire) but that didn't mean he wanted the man _dead_! Even worse was when Clark had shown up. Thankfully they had only knocked him out before leaving…but leaving the freshman lying unconscious on the floor had made Whitney want to throw-up.

It was that action that caused him to seek out Clark and by association Lana and warn them that the gang was planning on killing Lex. He didn't know how he felt about the amount of gratitude in Clark's blue eyes when he told them this information.

Of course things never go as planned and he almost ended up being crushed to death by a car….but once again Clark pushed him out of the way and saved his life. He felt so overwhelmed.

All of a sudden it didn't matter what everyone else thought of him…the only one who had continued to stand by him despite every awful thing he had done to push him away was Clark. He was so overjoyed that he had kissed the farm boy square on the lips.

Once again it would seem luck was not in the cards for him. Clark had frozen under Whitney's passionate kiss and gently pushed him away. He had looked at him sadly and quietly said just a few words. Those few words had felt like a blow to the chest.

"I'm glad you're okay Whitney…I really am…but this-this can't happen….I'm with Lex now"

He suddenly wished the gang had succeeded after all, but he had pasted on a brave face and smiled his best cocky smile he could manage before saying in a voice just slightly too strained, "Of course…just thanking you Clark…I'll see you later" before walking away.

He stopped momentarily to torture himself as he saw Clark and Lex embrace….and it was just one more thing that had fallen through his fingers.

_oxOxo_

His last memory of high school…the prom, was bitter sweet. He had gradually gained back some of what he had lost. He was once again dating the head cheerleader (as yes it was Lana), he had managed to secure a junior coaching position for the rest of the high school football season, which in turn had raised his status in his fickle friends eyes.

He had finally managed to lock away most of his longing for that blue eyed god….or at least he got good at lying to himself over it. However, he couldn't help but feel that part of him was missing.

He toyed with idea of trying to win Clark back, but he had finally come to see how selfish he was being. He hadn't been fair to Clark when they were together…hell, he had barely treated the boy better then dirt…he couldn't keep hurting him.

Clark Kent was meant for so much more.

The prom dance had been going on for a few hours when Whitney couldn't stand anymore of the fake smiles and tears, all set to streamers and confetti. He escaped outside to catch his breath. Of course _he _happened to be doing the exact same thing. Ironically enough Clark Kent had snuck out for a cigarette…Whitney wasn't quite able to reconcile the perfect, obedient farm boy with just an average teen who would steal smokes from his dad. Apparently there was still a lot to Kent he didn't know.

They had stood in silence for awhile; unlike so many times previously this silence was compatible.

Whitney finally bit the bullet, "So how's Lex…how come he didn't come tonight?" the blond had been surprised to see Clark show up with his blond reporter friend instead of the bald billionaire.

Clark shrugged, "we broke up"

Whitney's eyebrows rose in surprise, "I'm sorry"

Clark glanced over at him with an amused expression, "Are you?"

Whitney sent him a small grin, "no…I hated the guy"

Clark gave a chuckle, before straightening and turning towards Whitney, "so…Lana?"

Whitney looked at the ground embarrassed but answered the question, "yeah…just like she always planned…the perfect prom king and queen"

Clark hummed at his answer and looked like he was about to make another comment when Whitney cut him off, "Look Clark no matter how much I want to…we can't get back together…I think that this is for the best, you deserve better" he said in a rush.

Clark gave him a long look before replying, snubbing out the remainder of his cigarette "Yeah I do…" he started to walk away but paused and looked back over his shoulder at Whitney, "…but so do you" and with that he left Whitney standing in the cold, contemplating his answer.

He didn't know what Clark meant by it. But he knew he had for once done the right thing…Clark deserved to find happiness and as much as Whitney wanted too, he couldn't be the one to give it to him. Clark would achieve greatness…this much he was sure of. And maybe, when he had learned to live with his mistakes he might as well.

He watched the night sky for a while longer before squaring his shoulders and returning to face that thing called life.


End file.
